Wow. Thanks for giving us your views on Kennedy! (And for answering the Vietnam question.) You gave us quite a bit to chew on there. I will definitely have to go get that movie you mentioned "Seven Days in May."

The strange thing about Kennedy, to me, is the more I study him, the period, and his assassination, the more I tend to admire him. And you were right, he was president at a most crucial and dangerous juncture - as Lincoln was.

Thanks to all who have contributed.

Originally posted by HALLOWEEN78
When putting Ford, Carter, or Kennedy up against the likes of Jefferson, Washington, Madison, Monroe, Adams, and Lincoln as far as the best; they don't stand a chance. Of course, that's just my opinion. I could be wrong.(although I highly doubt it.)

I started this thread to poll ATS members' views on our various presidents. No one should be criticized for who they like. We've all got our own opinions on this subject, and we all have a right to them.

The presidents who ruled through the earliest days of our nation were men of a different time. They had much different problems to face. The presidents of the 20th-century were men of the modern age - quite a different world. You can't really put them up against each other and say "these guys were better.." because these guys had to deal with much different problems.. like the extreme proliferation of technology, rapid global communication and nuclear warfare.

I'm going to have to go with Reagan because I lived through his term, there may have been better ones at an earlier time... I just thank god he was president when he was... Can you imagine how many people would probably hate him if he was President today?

Just think about that for a second...

[edit on 2-12-2004 by LostSailor]

I loved Reagan, too. The man meant business. And despite what so many of his detractors like to claim, his head was full of his own well-thought out ideas. He, like Lincoln, had a vision for this nation, one of a much grander scale. That's what truly great leadership entails.

I'll never forget how he gave this nation its pride back and how he went on to rebuild and revigorate the world's most awesome fighting force in history. I may have fought under G.H.W. Bush, but we were Reagan's Army. And I am most proud of that.

To the Gipper!

Win won for the Gipper!

Best President ever: Ronald Reagan (Got America going again, collapsed USSR)
Worst President ever: Franklin Roosevelt (Prolonged Great Depresion, allowed Rothschild to fund Germany's illegal military and did nothing about it)

My grasp of history, beyond the linear, is not as important as my life's milestones; so I can speak on being an aware little kid with Carter on forward.
By far, no other president endured what Clinton did over his tenure; and performed with such positive historic results.
Keep the flames to yourselves, please....cause I gots a pocket - O - napalm & can burn your pres pic to the ground while defending mine!!

I consider the two best Presidents to be George Washington and Thomas Jefferson.

Although Washington was by no means a "simple farmer" he, like Jefferson, ruled as a true Cincinnati (and, no, I'm not talking about the city in Ohio. If you do not understand the allusion, it is not your fault; but it shows where our country has gone). When the bulk of the citizenry, uncertain of how a Republic should be, suggested that the best form of address to the President was either "your Excellency" or "your Majesty", George Washington insisted on "Mr. President". In such simple ways, he set the republic on its right path.

Thomas Jefferson was the last Libertarian President of the United States. Another Cincinnatus, he continued the work of Washington, and understood the need for an educated citizenry. It was his personal library which formed the nucleus of the greatest library on the face of the earth, the Congressional.

A fascinating (and true) story is told when John Kennedy, a popular but mediocre president, hosted a roomful of American Nobel Prize winners at a state dinner, where he toasted them by saying "Never has this room seen a greater gathering of genius -- since Thomas Jefferson dined here alone."

The second worst president was Franklin Roosevelt (who was President when I was born). He set the country on a path of social activism which has sapped whatever moral fiber of the Republic was left prior to his ascendancy.

Although the country had gotten away from its libertarian and peceful leanings by the mid nineteenth century where Manifest Destiny and the Imperialist Mexican War had already been fought, the true exemplar of American dictatorship was the one who played King George III to the world, and the worst president who ever served: Abraham Lincoln.

abraham lincoln, fdr, both for their amazing handling of severe scenarios. teddy cause he was an awesome, awesome man. i liked reagan a lot, as well. nixon, too. he gets a bad wrap, but kennedy did it to, he just didnt get caught. nixon - clean air act, fix energy crisis, open relations to china? GW, of course.

a friend of mine made a list of the top ten presidents. we were exactly right compared to one made by 200 historians, except we had clinton, they had reagan. their list was made in 1999, they would never have put clinton on (lewinsky).

so, favs. lincoln, fdr. and cleveland, cuz im related.

As for my favorite president it owuld be Abe Lincoln, despite the fact that he did breach some civil rights issues, he was very intelligent, down to earth, and he was a great leader. He managed to keep the nation together through the Civil War, managed to keep it from getting any dirtier that it was. He did a lot of good for our nation.

I would also like to mention Ronald Reagen as a close seconded. I liked him for what he did for our nation, and for his leadership abilities. Following Reagen are Jefferson, need I explain? Pretty much why Gaz and ESK admire him, and he's always quoteable. Fourth would be the long serving FDR, and fifth JFK a very underratted leader.

The Greatest President and one of the greatest men Period was.....

Thomas Jefferson

The Father of the Libertarian Ideals

Originally posted by shots

[
Correct me If I am wrong but I was under the impression that it was Kenney that first ordered troops into Viet Nam not out.

Actually I believe it was johnson who ordered the troops in first.
My favorite president would had to be Reagen and Clinton. But the best president would had to be Washington and FDR. Washington because he led a new nation, and no one did it before him so he set the bar. FDR because he led our country through a great depression and through WW2, without his programs the country would be quite different.

Kennedy wanted the troops out of Vietnam the year of '63 before Chirstmas, but other government officials did not want it and Kennedy made orders to start the pullout however he died in Dallas. Shortly after his death, his orders to pullout were repealed and we stayed in 'Nam. That is one of the reasons why many believe was an incentive for the right-wing to get involved with the Kennedy murder.

I believe Johnson had us stay in Vietnam, and Nixon was the one who stopped American millitary action in Vietnam.

Originally posted by JRex
Mine was and is John F. Kennedy. He was a great man and no he was not the person who got us initially embroiled in Vietnam. The true originator of that imbrolio was Winston Churchhill.

Kindly explain how on earth Chrurchill could have ordered US troops into Nam? Only the president of the US had that authority as we all know.



Sure what may have been said and done in prior years is true, but that is not the point here, is it?

[edit on 12/3/2004 by shots]

[edit on 12/3/2004 by shots]

William Jefferson Clinton, 8 years of prosperity and peace. I miss those times.

My favorite president is Teddy Roosevelt. He took charge and put power back into the presidency. He did not let anyone mess with him and set up the national park system. He also helped workers rights to improve.

Best president ever?

Ronald Reagan hands down!

If you'll remember the Iranian hostage crisis during the Carter years where they were held for 444 days and then released on the day Ronald Reagan took office!

He was a "BAD A$$" on his first day as president and remained so until his last!

On top of that, get shot by an assassin and then walk into the emergency room at the hospital!

Top that!

I think my choices would be known already.

My favourite President would be Andrew Shepherd, a brilliant orator and clear thinker.

Lewis: "The important thing is not to look like we're panicking."
Shepherd: "And here I was thinking the important thing was not to panic."

My second favourite would be Jed Bartlett. A man with his heart in the right place. "I really screwed you on the milk price, didn't I? Well I'm not going to make children's lunches more expensive just for you."

Originally posted by HowlrunnerIVMy second favourite would be Jed Bartlett. A man with his heart in the right place. "I really screwed you on the milk price, didn't I? Well I'm not going to make children's lunches more expensive just for you."

DAMN STRAIGHT! what a great show. they ran into a lot of trouble once clinton ended, he was modeled after him after all, but they did a fantastic job of making up the ground, and relating it to current events in the world at that time. the best thing about him was that he was a brilliant man. we need to see more of that in presidents. and i mean that for all of them, not (just) the current.

Mine without a doubt would be Thomas Jefferson.

close to the top would most probably have to be GW, Grant, & ike. not so much for what they did as president, (GW for that too) but for them leading us through the three most important wars our country has faced.